Uzbek Elections Deemed Unfair

Featuring only parties loyal to President Islam Karimov, the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) said on Monday there had been little improvement since similarly unfair elections in 1999.

The head of the OSCE mission, Lubomir Kopaj, added that: "The election legislation by the authorities failed to ensure a pluralistic, competitive and transparent election."

The OSCE concluded: "The similarity of the political platforms of the registered political parties appeared to deprive voters of a genuine choice."

Four opposition parties were barred from participating in the Sunday vote after the justice ministry refused to register them.

But Karimov, who has ruled the nation of 26 million since Soviet times, hailed the vote as a step towards democracy, pointing to five loyal parties on the ballot as a sign of a viable multi-party system.